


Upside Down

by Konwaliawrites



Category: Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Sonadow - Freeform, Spring, flowers are cute
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-14
Updated: 2019-02-14
Packaged: 2019-10-28 01:26:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,856
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17777945
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Konwaliawrites/pseuds/Konwaliawrites
Summary: We explore this world constantly, me and you. We fight, tense our spines, stand up tall and proud and protect the universe. But when we both halt to a stop and just sit down together, we turn into something far more beautiful and lovable. /Sonadow V-Day special





	Upside Down

The endless universe that Shadow knew existed out there was covered with bright, pearly blue as the sun came up, letting the moon maiden rest. It was a good thing really, even if being unable to see the stars felt confining at times.

Living on Mobius had its pros and cons. The ground beneath his feet felt endless, just like the sky used to feel. That is not to say life on ARK did not feel restrictive, however, it was the ground that confined Shadow. In a way, regardless of where he lived, there was always something solid to hold onto, be it the crushing empyrean or cold duralinum floor.

At the present, he was sitting on fresh spring grass, leaning against one of the dogwood saplings near his house, sipping tea and playing with the cotton fabric of the checkered blanket he brought along. He definitely could see the potential of this weird place. He understood why Maria wanted to see and experience it all so much.

Somehow, the sweet aroma of jasmine combined with green tea leaves tasted better when he could see the shades of pastel marking themselves on the sky. Dipping themselves in the canvas up above the vault, blending without any sense of precision, and yet, strangely fitting, surrounding the upcoming sun.

He truly wished that Maria was here to see this. One day, when they reunite, he will make sure to tell her all about Mobius and himself — from his adventures and experiences, to the slight foam that appeared when the waves kissed the shore, and to the way his dogwood trees bloomed into the softest of petals...

_ You’d be surprised, Maria _ , Shadow thought.  _ The plants in this world cry solid tears, each one in so many different shapes and colors it’s impossible to count them all. _

The ebony hedgehog allowed his eyelids to close. He took a deep breath. Shadow took his time existing in this world, and not even the annoying sound of rustling and steps on the grass disturbed him.

“Guess who!” Came a voice from above.

Shadow slowly opened his eyes to see Sonic hanging from one of the branches of the tree, right above himself. He sighed, unfazed by the other’s childish behavior. Sonic the Hedgehog was a strange individual, but this isn’t something that would surprise Shadow by now. They went together through hell and back on their adventures, fighting evil robots and preventing the occasional destruction of the universe. Seeing Sonic hanging upside down on a tree branch was not too bizarre by this point.

“Sonic the Hedgehog,” The dark hedgehog spoke in a deadpan manner. He stopped in his sentence to take a sip of his beverage, steamy clouds now gone from above the cup, “To what do I owe the pleasure?”

His friend only giggled at his seemingly ignorant reaction as he took another sip..

“Hey, you make that sound like you’re not happy to see me!” The hero of Mobius exclaimed with a laugh.

“... Well….” Shadow raised his brows and looked away — it lasted only a couple of seconds before a tiny smirk formed its way onto the tan muzzle and Sonic knew.

“Nuh-uh, Shads. I know better than that.”

“Whatever,” Shadow answered. The word might have been harsh, but the tone in which the dark hedgehog spoke did not sound unnerving at all; it was laced with that alluring sense of playfulness that always seemed to cling to the darker male whenever the two interacted.

Both mobians went silent for a while, Sonic taking the opportunity to stare at the striped hedgehog; he stared into the distance, his focus on the colors of the sky. Shadow was silent, didn’t even look at Sonic, but knew. The hero of Mobius felt it in his Chaos energy, saw it in his smile, saw in the way his muscles and quills relaxed.

Without a doubt, the Ultimate Lifeform was happy just being like this. Being a part of something so simple, yet bringing so much joy. That sense of stability the dark hedgehog had yearned for so long.

The blue speedster smiled, wide and warm. The red fierce and intense like the cardinal flower, and yet it seemed calm, alluring, and peaceful as a lotus.

Sonic closed his eyes, and for a brief moment, he felt like he was floating. Jumping from one lily pad to another, desperate to reach his single red lotus. So unique, and different from any other plant that flowed and bloomed around him. He could almost hear the water tapping as he made a move closer to his flower.

Plop, plop. He snickered at the thought.

That seemed to attract his darker counterpart’s attention, for he looked up to stare Sonic in the eye with a curious expression gracing his features.

Suddenly it felt like Shadow was waiting for something. Before the cerulean hedgehog had the chance to ask, the words already were spoken.

“How long do you plan to stay like this?” The striped hedgehog asked, sounding like a parent scolding his overly-hyped, unruly child. Sonic only shrugged in response to the tone.

“I dunno, how long do you plan to sit here?”

_ Hm, good question, _ Shadow thought and looked down at his nearly empty tea mug.

“... Until I finish my tea, I guess.”

Sonic only nodded in approval and started playing with the white flowers gathered on the branches of the tree. Suddenly, a thought came to his mind, something he always wanted to bring up but never got the chance to before. So he rolled with it and spoke his mind as he always has.

“You know, I’m glad,” His tenor voice sounding strangely serious, making the dark hedgehog look up in surprise once more, “I’m glad that it turned out to be some stupid illusion, and not you. All this time I’ve spent in that cell, I… I thought about a lot of things, maybe for the first time I focused so much on thinking before acting, and, I was very often catching myself pondering how in the world could you do that to me, to everyone… but then, there was this glimmer of hope that maybe, just maybe, there is an explanation for that. So… yeah, thank you for staying loyal to us. And for saving me,” He smiled warmly at the older hedgehog and savored the sweet cinnamon blush that graced Shadow’s tan features at this confession.

_ Seems like the wind has brought my lotus a little closer to me. _

“It’s nothing,” Shadow said, a little monotone. “I’m partially to blame for what happened, anyway.”

The cobalt hedgehog frowned at these words, ready to counter the other mobian’s way of thinking.

“You’re not. I’ve heard what happened from Rouge, Shads. You worked in self defense, you couldn’t have predicted, or cared for that matter, how it was going to affect the squad or Infinite. Besides, let’s be honest, what kind of friend abandons someone at their weakest moment? You can’t be held responsible for their actions, Shadow.” Ruby eyes widened and Sonic could see the pain in there, as well as guilt, but also a sense of hope. So he continued. 

“Friends stick together —I don’t remember how many times Tails or Knuckles got hurt, and it killed me each time it happened, but they didn’t leave. They stood by me no matter what. That’s what friends do. Infinite didn’t have that, and that’s sad, but that’s not your fault.” The blue hero took a deep breath before he spoke once again, “He hurt people, terribly. A lot went wrong in Infinite’s life and all that impacted who he is today. You didn’t create Infinite. Much more went wrong than you defending yourself and verbally offending him— though I admit— it wasn’t a nice thing to do but nothing that could’ve, should’ve— unleashed such a storm. So don’t blame yourself.”

“Thank you.”

“No worries, just stating the truth. I believe that the world has way too many colors to be seen in just black and white. And while I’m not saying that you did a good thing, you did the thing that was most morally right at the time, given the circumstances.”

“Also um, I was wondering… why didn’t you help the resistance these past six months? That’s something I didn’t manage to dig out of Rouge.”

“I was… lost,” The Ultimate Lifeform replied, his face blank and bearing no emotions.

“Lost?”

“Yeah. I have already lost someone dear to me. I have experienced them being brutally taken away from me for the sake of human greed. As you already know, it was devastating. And… when I thought I got to experience it yet again, I… I just lost it. I couldn’t manage to be close with anyone, besides Rouge and Omega, and even that was rare. But, your friends, the resistance… it reminded me too much of you and everything you stood up for. I wanted to help, but… I just couldn’t do it.”

Sonic was speechless for a moment, unsure what to say. He never expected Shadow to care this much, but this moment was so vulnerable, the dark hedgehog was finally warming up to him and he so, so didn’t want to mess it up with pointless questioning… so he did the only rational thing that came to his mind.

“Shads… I’m so, so sorry.”

“Don’t be. You didn’t choose to get kidnapped.”

“Well, yeah, maybe not, but if I had fought harder they would not—“

“You did all you could. It’s Eggman’s fault for doing this to you. You’re not to blame, Sonic. Besides, from what I’ve heard, you didn’t have it easy up near the Death Egg, either….”

“Uh, you have  _ no _ idea….”

“Try me.” Shadow suggested, understanding the beam in those fiery irises and Sonic trusted that.

“It… it was really dark. Cold, lonely, painful.” Sonic choked these words out, and it was killing him, Shadow could tell.

“I can imagine that.” He replied, not wishing to push the subject somewhere the blue hero wouldn’t want it to go, but still wanting to offer some support.

“But, you know…” The blue hero’s frown turned into a gentle smile. One of his hands grabbed one of the white flowers and dropped it on Shadow’s head. Sonic chuckled when he noticed the dark agent’s confused features, as if he couldn’t decide whether to get angry or not, “I’m here now. And that’s what’s most important.”

Shadow was taken aback by Sonic’s sudden change of behavior, but it didn’t take him long to understand. They weren’t really all that different. Both of them had this dark, scary place constantly at the back of their mind that they refused to let anyone see. Except Shadow pushed people away for them to not see it, while Sonic covered it up with a smile, hoping nobody will notice it even exists.

_ It’s okay, Sonic. I will not ask if you are not comfortable talking. _

“Yeah. And don’t do that flower thing again, hedgehog,” He threatened the overly cheerful hedgehog with a glare and a low growl in his throat.

“Awwh, come on! It’s rainin’ flowers, don’t be so uptight,” Sonic replied, grabbing yet another flower, but didn’t drop it just yet. “Loves me,” he began, pulling out a single petal and dropping it on Shadow’s head, missing the way the older hedgehog started shaking in irritation, “...Loves me not,” Sonic continued, tearing off yet another petal.

“Loves me,” Another petal fell. The blue hedgehog was definitely testing Shadow’s patience today….

“Sonic….” Shadow warned, his cheeks burning with anger, but Sonic paid no attention to that.

“Loves me not,” 

Oh,  _ that  _ was enough. The dark hedgehog stood up, glaring into happy green eyes. There was one last petal left and Sonic planned to repeat his childish, dumb process.

“Lov—“

He didn’t get the chance to do it, however. Shadow snarled and grabbed both sides of Sonic’s face, forcing their lips to connect. The dark lids slid closed immediately, which Sonic was grateful for, because that way it was impossible for the ruby eyes to catch the utter shock in Sonic’s eyes, as well as the bright red bloom spreading all over his muzzle.

It was… so confusing, so different from anything he’s ever experienced. It was warm, and soft, but at the same time hard and emotional in too many ways for it to make sense, yet somehow, his body understood and not only that, responded to it.

So he played along, catching Shadow’s upper lip, then lower, exchanging angles, going faster, slower, more gentle, only to nip harder yet again, both hedgehogs testing what they liked best. The two heroes shivered from how intense it felt, Shadow even letting out a quiet moan at the sensation. 

He loved it all. The playful nips that made his heart flutter, the rough nibbles that quickened his breath, it felt so exciting, enticing — he wanted to savor it all. He wanted to feel these lips forever, he wanted to get lost in this feeling over and over and  _ over again,  _ he wanted that and much, much more….

So this time, it was Sonic surprising Shadow with a move forward, when the blue hedgehog hesitantly stuck his tongue out, gently teasing the striped hedgehog’s upper lip.

_ Oh, he had him _ . He had him right there with that shy invitation, if Shadow’s shuddered breath was anything to go by.

It was shy and messy, and maybe Sonic would have laughed at how great it described their entire relationship, if his mind wasn’t completely occupied with something else right now. 

Shadow, and the way he groaned whenever their tongues brushed, spreading the heat oh-so-sweetly; Shadow, and the way his gloved fingers shivered against Sonic’s muzzle; Shadow, and the way he inched closer and closer with each passing second, unable to get enough; Shadow, Shadow, Shadow. In that very moment, he was his beginning and end. Everything could have stopped existing for these couple of seconds for all he cared. Or maybe it did?

When the dark hedgehog pulled away, they were both out of breath. Sonic smiled sheepishly and looked away, his confidence wiped out in a matter of seconds. Shadow looked the other way, too, and if it weren’t for the flush on his cheeks and the gentle twist of his brows, he would have looked like he was upset with something.

“Wh… what was that for?” Sonic asked once he recollected from his bewilderment and to be honest, Shadow did not have a good answer to that. An  _ answer _ , yeah, maybe, but he refused to play himself like that.

So he grabbed his blanket and now his empty tea mug, readying himself to go back to his cottage and for a second, Sonic worried he was just going to leave him like that, longing, confused, waiting for answers.

“I’d say ‘to shut you up’, but that would sound like it was torn straight out of one of Rose’s novels,” The ebony hedgehog started, but Sonic cut him off.

“Since when do you have access to Amy’s library?” The cobalt hedgehog asked, teasing. Shadow was going to have none of it, though.

“She’s not exactly silent about it.” His dark counterpart stated darkly and honestly, Sonic could not disagree with that.

“Okay, fair point.”

“But anyway, the best answer I can give you is that you pissed me off and that’s the tea.”

Sonic frowned, failing to see the logic behind these words.

“... You know, usually when people kiss someone, they do it for a completely different reason. You’re like, as far from how it usually works as possible.”

“Perhaps,” Shadow admitted thoughtfully with a finger resting on his chin, “Is that a problem?”

“Well, maybe.” Sonic scratched his ear in a nervous manner, weighing pros and cons about what he’s about to say, “Not if you’re up to doing this again, though.”

“Well, maybe I am,” The dark hedgehog replied, and a daring smirk came to his face upon seeing Sonic’s hopeful look, “Only if you can catch me.”

With these words, Shadow sped to his house, not giving Sonic a split second to brace himself.

“Whoa, wait!” Sonic yelled, attempting to jump off the branch, which ended up as a clumsy fall since he was sitting upside down for way too long for his brain to process the different directions so fast. There was a dry chuckle as the dark hedgehog sped inside his house and that riled Sonic up even more. He pulled himself up and ran after that grumpy, irresistible hedgehog.

He grabbed a hold of the striped arm on their way up the stairs, immediately pressing Shadow closer.

“Caught ya, pretty boy.”

Sonic the Hedgehog has seen many incredible things. He’s seen the silver glow of the stars up close, colorful planets so different from Mobius, fields of flowers and fireworks that brought his heart to life.

But never,  _ ever  _ has he seen Shadow looking this  _ playful  _ before. And he loved every second of it.

“Damn right you did.” 

This time, it was Sonic who pulled in for yet another kiss.


End file.
